FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE:
AUSTIN WOMAN NAMED
“TEXAS NURSE PRACTIONER OF THE YEAR”
WINNER SAVES LYME DISEASE
PATIENTS WHO’VE BEEN MISDIAGNOSED
Austin
TX August 11, 2004 —
She’s been a respected Family Nurse Practitioner for sixteen years.
But Ginger Savely’s commitment to Lyme disease education, prevention
and treatment has catapulted her into the national spotlight. The Texas
Nurse Practitioners (TNP) have named Savely “Texas Nurse Practitioner
of the Year.”
“It’s tragic
how often Lyme disease is misdiagnosed,” says Savely. “Many of
my patients have been told they have Parkinson’s disease or ALS and
have been suffering for years. I just helped one man who had difficulty
walking and talking.... A mother of three shook like a leaf until we correctly
treated her for Lyme disease.”
To win her coveted
title, among other criteria, Savely had to demonstrate a “great ability
to contribute creatively to the advancement of the nurse practitioner movement
beyond traditional boundaries set by social and cultural barriers.”
Savely attributes much
of her Lyme education to the International Lyme and Associated Diseases
Society (ILADS), the world’s largest non-profit organization comprising
Lyme specialists. Savely is a member and will be honored for her accomplishment
at ILADS’ October meeting in Rye, New York. The TNP will officially
honor Savely at its annual meeting in Austin next month.
“The media are
largely ignoring a huge medical problem. Lyme disease is much more prevalent
than West Nile Virus, yet look how much attention that story is getting,”
says Savely.
Savely and her patients
are available for interviews.
For more information
about Lyme disease go to www.ilads.org
| CONTACTS |
|
| Christi
O’Connor |
(415)
883–2491 |
| Jeffrey
Boynton |
(415)
834–9964 |
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